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M.C. Ghose, J.

18. These are two petitions by M.A. Adams and Ben Rose, who have been convicted, one under Section 44 and the other under Section 45, Calcutta Police Act. The facts in short are that on the strength of a warrant issued by the Deputy Commissioner of Police, Detective Department, under the provisions of Section 46, Calcutta Police Act, Sub-Inspector Syed Hossain of the Detective Department at 11 p.m. on 25th January 1935 raided the premises of the Harlequin Club, which consists of two rooms on the first floor of No. 15 Park Street. In the first room was a Billiard table, a bench and a cup-board. In this room were found petitioners M.A. Adams and Ben Rose and 5 other persons. In the next room, which is the card room, were found 9 other persons. On the floor of the first room were found three slips of paper which appear to be betting slips and Ben Rose had a pocket book with the entry, "Bardie 160-20 Adams, 160-20 Bose." In the card room the officer found six small pieces of paper with names of horses and bets and 11 pieces of torn paper, it being the prosecution case that all these 17 pieces of paper formed a single sheet on which bets were taken. In a drawer was found a blank playing card containing the names of horses and a bet. In a cash box was found a book of Irish Sweep-stake tickets out of which two had been removed and with these tickets was a list of members forming a Syndicate. Another of the accused had two programmes of the Calcutta Faces of 19th January 1935 and 26th January 1935. Yet another had the acceptance paper of the Turf Club with pencilled notes of Sprint timings and two programmes of the Calcutta and Bombay Race meetings of 26th January 1935. Another accused had an acceptance paper of R.C.T.C. Yet another had a slip containing names of horses. Petitioner M.A. Adams was the secretary of Harlequin Club which as stated above consisted of two rooms. There were other rooms in the flat which were used by M.A. Adams as his private residence. The whole flat was rented by M.A. Adams from Mr. Galstaun at Rs. 200 a month. The telephone and electric light were in the name of petitioner Adams or his deceased wife. The club apparently was limited to subscribers or members who paid a fee of one rupee a month. Cards and billiards were played and drinks and refreshments were sold. The learned Chief Presidency Magistrate who has tried the case has come to the finding on these facts that the place was a common gaming house and that petitioner Adams kept it. He therefore convicted petitioner Adams under Section 44, Calcutta Police Act, and sentenced him to rigorous imprisonment for three months. He found petitioner Ben Rose and 14 others guilty under Section 45, Calcutta Police Act. Petitioner Ben Rose was sentenced to rigorous imprisonment for one month and the others sentenced to fines of Rs. 50 each.